Sisterly Advice
by MermaidsandLace
Summary: Oneshot. Mia has some words of advice for her big brother that prompts Dom to have that much needed talk with Letty. Set before the last scene in The Fate of the Furious.


**I'm still in my feelings about how they had Letty react to Marcos and Dom being seemingly unconcerned about her feelings. I thought he could use a little reality check by his little sister so, this happened. Hope you enjoy it!**

Mia had flown in for the weekend to assist in setting up the nursery and babyproofing the house. After getting through her initial shock of the entire situation, she had a few choice words for her brother all the while she was slapping him on the back of the head.

The rest of the weekend had gone by uneventfully, though Mia had noticed that her usually outspoken sister-in-law was being oddly quiet.

Mia was quite sure that she needed to have a serious conversation with her big-headed brother, but her chance didn't present itself until she was preparing to leave on Sunday morning.

Her bag was packed and sitting next to the door when she threw her arms around her sister-in-law. "I love you." She whispered to her. "You're the strongest person I know. It's okay not to know how you feel, Letty." Pulling back to look her in the eyes, she said, "If you ever need me,"

"I know, Mi." Letty cut her off. "I know." She smiled a smile that seemed forced, pulling Mia in to hug her again. "I love you too."

Mia heard her sniff quietly as she pulled out of the embrace and she watched sadly as Letty slowly made her way up the stairs.

Once Letty was out of sight, Mia turned to her brother, seated on the couch. "Dom, I have to ask you something, but you're not going to like it."

Dom's eyebrows creased as he looked up at his sister expectantly.

Taking a deep breath, Mia sat down beside him. "If Cipher hadn't killed Elena," Mia paused, knowing that she was about to strike a nerve. "Would you have walked away from Letty?"

Dom's eyes grew wide at his sister's question. The mere thought of it was absurd to him, but he'd never taken the time to wonder if the answer was as clear to everyone else as it was to him. "Jesus, Mia." Was all he could muster.

"I know it's an unfair question," Mia defended. "You had a completely different relationship with Elena. It was based on pain and loss, but you were with her for a few years compared to nearly a lifetime with Letty. If you had had to make that decision, what would you have done?"

"Elena was a comfort, but I didn't love her." He admitted, truthfully. It was something he had to face each and every day he spent with Elena. He could only care for her so much and he knew that love was never a part of it. "I couldn't have. The only woman that I could and ever will love is Letty."

"That doesn't answer the question, Dom."

"I would _never_ walk away from Letty." He answered sternly. "I told her that. In Russia, I told her I wouldn't leave her, that I never would. And she told me she knew that." Dom rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "She does. She knows that." He said, although it came out as more of a question than a statement.

Sighing, Mia shifted on the couch to look her brother in the eyes. "Dom, I know you like to think of Letty as some kind of Superwoman with no insecurities whatsoever, but this is a _child_ that _you_ had with _another_ woman. This is not something that she's going to get used to overnight. She's putting on a brave face for you because she loves you, Dom. But there are a thousand questions running through her head that she isn't going to ask because she doesn't want to ruin this for you. I mean, have you told Letty what you just told me? Have you said those words to her, assured her that what you had with Elena wasn't love?"

"She knows," He tried to say.

"No!" Mia quickly cut him off, standing from the couch. "I don't care what you say that she knows. You are not the only two people that exist in your world anymore. Elena was a part of it. That little boy is a part of it now. It's gotten messy and complicated and Letty deserves to hear that her place in this hasn't changed." Throwing her bag over her shoulder, she leaned down to kiss his cheek quickly and turned to walk towards the front door. "I'm sorry I can't stay. Tell everyone 'Hello' for me."

"You really think she has doubts?" Dom asked quietly without looking up at his sister.

Pulling the front door open, she turned to him. "She's only human, Dom." Were Mia's last words to her brother before she stepped out of the house, pulling the door closed behind her.

Sighing, Dom dragged his hands down his face. He knew she was right. He knew he had to talk to Letty about everything. Elena, their relationship, Marcos, and whether this life with him and his son was one that she even wanted. And that's the answer he's afraid of hearing. He had done many things that warranted her to walk away, but taking care of a child that was only his and not hers was never a life that either of them had envisioned.

Marcos, through no fault of his own, was a living reminder of the time she'd lost, the time they'd lost. And it was up to her to decide if that was all he'd ever be in her eyes.

Breathing deeply, Dom stood from the couch, made his way upstairs, and came to a stop in front of the bedroom he was to share with Letty.

She was coming out of the bathroom, her wet hair down and dressed in a red, flowy tank top and white skinny jeans.

"Letty," He said quietly as he entered their bedroom.

"Yeah?" She said without looking at him, busying herself by making the bed.

"We should talk."

"There's not a lot of time, Dom." She pulled the comforter up, adjusting it on one side before walking around to the other. "We have to get things ready. Everyone will be here soon."

"Letty," He walked up to her, as she adjusted the comforter once again, and grabbed her hand. "There's plenty of time. Talk to me."

Shaking her head in confusion, she said, "I don't know what to say, Dom. It seems that every time we're so close to just being settled and happy, something comes along that changes everything. And this isn't some little thing that we can fix; this is a _child_ , Dom. _Your_ child." Collapsing onto the bed with a sigh, she ran a hand through her hair. "I'm just trying to wrap my head around all of this."

"Me too," Dom said, taking a seat on the bed beside her.

There were a few beats of silence before she asked a question that had been burning in her mind. "Did you two ever talk about it? Kids, I mean."

"No," He answered immediately. "Letty, Elena and I weren't together because we loved each other. We were together because we understood each other."

"So, you never loved her?" Letty asked quietly.

"I was never _in_ love with her. I couldn't be." Grabbing her hand and pulling it into his lap, he said, "Even if you didn't come back to me, it never would have worked."

"But it did. For a while at least. Until I came back."

"I cared for Elena, Letty, that's true. We helped each other, we gave each other comfort. Long term was never the plan. We both knew that."

"How would we have done it?" Letty asked. "If Elena was alive, what would we do?"

Reaching out a hand, Dom caught her chin in his fingers, gently turning her head towards him. "You know I wouldn't have left you, right? Letty, please tell me you know that."

"Of course, I know that, Dom." She said, truthfully. "But that doesn't mean it hasn't crossed my mind. I mean, she's the mother of your child."

"Letty," He sighed her name. "When Rhodes pulled that gun on you in the alley, I had a choice to make. Cipher told me what she would do if I disobeyed her orders. I knew she would kill Elena if I let you go. And as terrible as it sounds, I didn't care in that moment. I just had to protect you, Letty." Leaning forward, he pressed his forehead against hers. "You are the most important person in my universe."

She breathed a sigh as she wrapped her fingers around his wrist and tilted her head, resting her cheek in his hand. "I just thought it would be me, you know?" She whispered. "That I would be the woman that made you a father." Shaking her head, she pulled his hand away and stood from the bed, turning away from him. "I'm being selfish."

"No, Letty," Dom quickly disagreed. "You have every right to feel the way that you do. I took something from you that I can't give back." Standing to his feet, he wrapped his arms around her from behind. "But I still want that family with you, Letty. The one we talked about in Cuba. And I don't want to raise my son alone. I want _us_ to raise _our_ son. But I don't want to force you into anything you don't want to do." As she spun around in his arms, his heart leapt when he noticed the small smirk on her face.

"You couldn't force me into anything, Toretto." She joked lightly, trailing her hands up to grip his biceps. "I'll always be by your side, Dom. But this isn't going to be easy for me."

Dom nodded. "I know."

Trailing a hand down the back of his head, she said, "I just need time." Her fingers caressed the skin of his neck. "Time to get to know him. Time to love him. I can't replace her, but I'll be the best that I can be for him. He deserves that and so does she."

Placing his hands on either side of her face, he leaned down and pressed a kiss to her lips. "I love you so much, Letty. Thank you for believing in me."

She smiled against his lips. "Always."

"You left me with Mia on purpose, didn't you?" He asked, to which his wife only laughed.


End file.
